Thousands of demonstrators marched through Edinburgh on Saturday to oppose plans for large-scale artificial intelligence (AI) data centres across Scotland, raising concerns about their environmental impact, energy consumption and potential consequences for local communities.
Protesters carrying placards and wearing costumes gathered at the top of the Royal Mile before marching towards the Scottish Parliament, calling for greater scrutiny of proposed developments.
The demonstration comes amid growing opposition across Europe to the expansion of AI infrastructure, particularly the substantial electricity requirements of data centres and their potential impact on climate commitments.
Campaigners expressed concern over proposed facilities in several Scottish communities, including Cockenzie in East Lothian and Larbert in Falkirk.
The debate has intensified following the emergence of plans for a major data centre at Chapelcross in Dumfries and Galloway, which could have a capacity of 1,000 megawatts (MW), potentially making it one of the largest facilities of its kind in the world.
The scale of the proposed development has attracted particular attention because DataVita’s facility in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, currently believed to be Scotland’s largest data centre, has a capacity of just 12 MW.
The proposed Chapelcross project would therefore represent a substantial increase in the scale of Scotland’s data centre infrastructure.
Environmental campaigners have warned that the rapid expansion of energy-intensive facilities could place additional pressure on electricity supplies and complicate efforts to meet Scotland’s climate targets.
The Scottish Greens and environmental organisations have called for a moratorium on large-scale data centre developments until their environmental and energy implications can be more fully assessed.
They have also raised concerns that growing electricity demand from AI infrastructure could increase competition for renewable energy resources.
The Scottish government, meanwhile, is preparing new planning guidance for data centres and developing a strategy intended to maximise their “public benefit”.
Officials have indicated that the strategy will seek to address the opportunities and challenges associated with the sector’s expansion.
Innovation Minister Alyn Smith has defended the development of data centres, arguing that they could play an important role in Scotland’s emerging AI economy.
Describing the facilities as “the whisky bonds of the AI sector”, Smith rejected some of the criticism surrounding their environmental impact as “wild”.
Speaking to the BBC, he argued that comparisons with poorly designed data centres in the US state of Utah did not necessarily reflect the types of facilities being proposed in Scotland.
His remarks highlighted the differing views over whether expanding data centre infrastructure would support Scotland’s technological development or create additional environmental pressures.
The protests reflect increasing public scrutiny of the resources required to support AI technologies, particularly as governments and technology companies consider investments in large-scale computing infrastructure.
With major developments under consideration and new planning guidance expected, the debate over Scotland’s data centre expansion is likely to remain a significant issue for policymakers, environmental groups and affected communities.